Seagate Technology of Scotts Valley, Calif., USA, the assignee company of the applicant herein, has made and sold in-shaft connectors as part of a spindle assembly for rotatably supporting magnetic disc drives for use in personal computers. The in-shaft connectors sold by Seagate included a set of three electrical prongs extending downwardly within the hollow interior of the spindle assembly shaft. The width of the hollow interior of the shaft provided sufficient room for a female connector to be inserted up into the shaft and connected to the three extended prongs in a manner where the female component completely surrounded the extended prongs. Laterally displaceable conductive elements engaged the extended prongs and the spring force of the conductive elements ensured a solid electrical connection.
While these male/female connectors have worked satisfactorily, it has been discovered that they tend to lose some of their spring elasticity, which can weaken the electrical integrity of the connection. They also tend to require a wide profile spindle shaft to accommodate the female connector, which limits the amount of room between the connector and the motor for the bearing components.
The present invention improves upon this prior art connector design.